Building your first home is a desirable life milestone and can be quite an exciting, yet daunting journey. With the right amount of research, quality advisers and a great build team, your goal of building your first home is achievable and can be in fact, a lot of fun.
Matt recently began his first new home build for him and his young family. We are loving working with Matt and can relate wholeheartedly to his reasons for wanting to build, like this one,
“Owning our own home will help make us feel more secure knowing we can stay in the one area and not have to move due to increasing rental prices.”
In reality, there are 5 basic steps to building your first home; planning, finances, finding land, choosing a builder and finally, bringing it all together into your dream build.
Planning
It begins as chats with your partner, ideas from your childhood, or even scribbles on a napkin. Yes, first point in any home build is the planning and ideas stage, by far one of the most exciting. A drafts person can help your scribbles become a complex, detailed and accurate floor plan for your dream home. At BCBG, we have our own in house drafts person and are happy to talk to you about your home plans anytime. A good set of plans can make your sustainable, affordable and quality home come to life, and can save you thousands.Check out our large selection of ready to go floor plans, waiting for your unique spin.
When we asked Matt what the most rewarding part of building his first home was, he replied with,
“Working with Adam, the in-house Architect and designing a plan which suits our family’s needs.”
Finances
When we asked Matt what he felt was the hardest part about getting into the property market, he had this to share with us,
“Definitely saving for a deposit while renting with a young family.”
Probably the first 2 questions every first home builder asks are; how will we afford it and how much will it cost?
Firstly, when dealing with finances, be sure to look around and shop around. Currently in Australia, the common answer for how much you need on a home loan deposit is about 20%. Sometimes this can seem out of reach for people and they get stuck in the rental circuit for years. However, there are things like the first home grant that can help get you started. Take a look and see what your government or state has on offer for grants. Check out more than the big 4 banks and do your research.
A good builder will have a lot of knowledge about the area and can often help you with any major questions you may have. There are things like; a stable income, asset wealth, credit history and genuine savings that can all come into play when applying for loans and may even help you obtain a low deposit home loan. The key here is to gather all your information. A financial adviser can help you in this area too.
Secondly, how much will the build cost?
No one likes surprise costs and you want to be getting workmanship that matches the price. Research your builder first, check out their previous work, talk to all staff members who will be involved with the planning and build process to get a feel for them. Also talk to the builder about how they work out a price; will they give you a fixed or fluid pricing contract? At BCBG we offer fixed price contracts and they all include our large list of New Home Inclusions. It means the price we quote you, is the price you will pay, and we always try to offer our builds on or under the time we advise.
Land
A trusted builder is a great source of information here. This is their office, they live and breathe different areas and suburbs day in and day out and they will know a lot about areas that are growing in wealth and unique little pockets. Sometimes you will choose to finance the land first, sit on it and finance the build later.
It also comes down to where you want to live. Factors to consider are: closeness to family and friends, available schools, commute to work, negative or positive growth in the area, quality of land and of course, price of land. Don’t forget to think outside the block. You may dream of suburb A, but suburb B might be more affordable and have a larger block of land, and its only next door. Other factors to consider when choosing a block are; is it flat, near flood plains, and what is the area like.
Matt had a few specifics when choosing where to build,
“For us it was important to find an area with good schools nearby and was centrally located but still fitted within our budget. Overall it was an easy decision once we heard about the Harmony Estate in Palmview.”
Builder
Choosing a builder is like choosing a doctor or a hair stylist, you want someone you can trust and someone who is going to do their absolute best work. Look for a builder with a good reputation, check out their previous builds, go in and meet them and have a chat. At BCBG, we are a 5th generation builder, we offer a 7-year structural warranty and our motto is “Quality Workmanship Guaranteed”. We take it as our personal responsibility to guide you through the process of building your first home, from start to finish. A home build can take anywhere between 12 and 16 weeks, so you want someone professional, reliable and who you can be in contact with throughout this journey.
What did Matt think was the best part of working with BCBG?
“Working with Ben Campbell has been a great experience. They have been fantastic in listening to our needs and working with us to build our family home.”
Bringing it all Together
In the end, you want your first home to be a fun experience. You want the price to match your budget, be what you expect, and you want the job done and done on time. At BCBG we pride ourselves on delivering our projects not just on time, but ahead of schedule, as we know you want to move in as soon as possible. Our build times are between 12 and 16 weeks, depending on the size of the home, but always completed as quick as possible, ensuring you are not only satisfied, but impressed. As in life, there are often hiccups or obstacles to overcome, and having a reliable, approachable and professional team to work with from start to finish is very important.
Building your first home can be one of the most rewarding and exciting experiences of your lives and with planning, research and the right team, can happen sooner than you may think.
If you would like to have a chat, contact us today, we’d love to hear form you.